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Monday, February 18, 2013

I have a thing for pancakes. If you have been reading this blog for any length of time you will notice a flapjack recipe usually appears at least once monthly. I am a carb queen.

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I love to start my day with sweet hot cakes. One of the down sides of this blog is I don't have one place with all my recipes. I find it frustrating trying to locate old posts; "what was the name of that dish?" I decided I am going to be re-posting some of my recipes by category to make recipes easier to find. Click on the caption link under each pancake picture for the recipe.

Friday, February 15, 2013

5 Fish Facts & Me

1. Wild not farmed fish for me!2. The first meal I made for Rich when we were dating was baked Salmon. He tried it with much persuasion and now loves it!3. I was once ordered a whole baked red snapper at a restaurant I did not know whole meant the freaking fish eyeballs and all dead on your plate. The sight of the dead fish staring me in the eyes caused me to knock it over spilling dinner all over myself.4.Fish make terrible pets. Once the poor creature comes into my possession their life span is cut severely short.5. I detest frozen breaded fish sticks. I think they are below human consumption.

Thursday, February 14, 2013

I am so excited about this post. These pancakes are delicious, easy to make, and gluten free. I love this photo too! I took over 30 pictures for this post. I have come a LONG way from my early blogging days only eight months ago and am looking forward to growing in my writing and my food photography.I picked a few Gerber daisy flowers from my garden to use in my photo shots for this recipe. I am in Florida remember. I keep a garden in the winter. It is pouring down buckets of rain down here while its a frozen tundra in the North.As I was snapping away I noticed some movement on the flower petals. Look at the little friend that made this a great shot today.

I am wishing you a very wonderful Valentine's Day. May you take time today to be with those you love and that love you. Love and be loved!

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

I feel so deeply guilty dodging those cute little girl scouts guarding the entrance of my place of employment these last few weeks. I just want to say "I can't eat your poisonous cookies, but here's a $20 for your trouble." Even if I was not gluten sensitive I would stir clear of these health demoting time bombs.Have you ever taken a look at the ingredients in those things?! Before you get all up in arms about my anti-girl scout COOKIE antics.Know that I am pro-girl scout (go girl power!) There is more to the cookie program than just making money for camping trips. The cookie campaign teaches life skills to these young ladies. That is awesome and I applaud their mission I'm just not buying any darn cookies.I used to be obsessed with enjoy thin mints. One of my best childhood friends, Erica, was a girl scout and got me hooked on samoas.

Monday, February 11, 2013

My family consumes a truck load of eggs on a weekly basis. Rich and I were discussing this during the course of the past week. Our egg consumption has increased from a dozen over a few weeks to a few dozen over a week. This is in large part due to our gluten free diet and clean eating habits. Thank God eggs are not terribly expensive. These days the cost of all food has sky rocketed. I began thinking back to my childhood egg consumption. My mom or dad would make scrambled eggs maybe once a week on the weekends; otherwise it was cold cereal, toaster strudel, or a bagel and out the door I went to school. My diet now is a far cry from the convenient carb filled goodness of elementary school yesteryear. Despite the change of eating habits my love for baked morning goods has not left me. I whipped these muffins up one morning spurred by the desire for something soft and slightly sweet to sink my teeth into.

Friday, February 8, 2013

I had this Amazon gift card burning a hole in my pocket for the last two months (thanks Dad!) It is always a decision between kitchen accessories or workout equipment when I have extra cash to spend. I have been wanting to purchase a heart rate monitor that I could use doing any type of training and it would measure calorie burn. I am a numbers person. I like to see what I am achieving in my workouts. I used to rely on the inaccurate calorie and distance monitors on cardio equipment in the gym. I have spent so many years endlessly running on treadmills like a caged hamster I rarely use cardio equipment these days. I prefer to perform pylometric or outdoor workouts.

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

You've heard of kale chips, but have you heard of collard greens chips? Same concept different leafy green and equally delicious. These little chips curb my salty crunchy cravings without weighing me down or bloating me up.

Monday, February 4, 2013

Sometimes I just want something simple and sweet. No muss no fuss. Requiring little effort put forth to satisfy my sweet tooth. The sweet tooth that never goes away. Ever. I indulge once maybe twice a week in my "treat of the week." I tweet my #treatoftheweek as proof of honoring my cravings and enjoyment of decadent treats. I don't believe in absolute deprivation. That is unbalanced and a bland way to live.I invite you to tweet me your #treatoftheweek. What is your favorite treat to indulge in?

Baked Stuff Apples

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed 8x8 baking dish with parchment paper. Place cored apples on top of parchment paper and set aside. In a medium sized mixing bowl combine almond flour,sugar, and cinnamon. Mix to combine. Stir in coconut oil and mix until crumb mixture forms then toss in raisins. Stuff the apples with almond flour mixture. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour until apples are tender when pierced with a fork. Serves 4.

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

My lovely friend, Erika, is an instructor for the Xtend Barre West Palm Beach studio. She invited me this past weekend to try a new class the studio is offering called Xtend Barre Stick.

Xtend Barre Stick is a 55 minute workout that utilizes a Pilates Stick attached to the ballet barre to add resistance. This class has a cardio component to build endurance and develops upper body strength and core stability.

Sunday, January 27, 2013

In October I had posted on the Facebook page that I was trying out stuffed cabbage. I did like what I came up with the first time, but the process was very tedious. I followed The Joy of Cooking's method to prep the cabbage. I placed the whole head of cabbage with core removed into boiling water. Every 5 minutes I would remove the HOT cabbage and peel away a few tender leaves and repeat. This was so tedious and my poor fingers were burned. I wised up the second time! This time to prep the cabbage I made a cut with a pairing knife at the base of each leave and gently pulled it off. I steamed the loose cabbage leaves in a steam basket until tender about 10 or so minutes. This method was a tremendous time AND finger saver.1 green cabbage with leaves removed in tack and steamed until tender (see above)1 lbs of lean ground beef or turkey meat1/2 cup of blanched almond flour1 egg1 grated carrot1 minced garlic clove1 small onion chopped1 tsp of dried Italian Seasoning1 tsp of sea salt1/4 tsp of ground black pepper28 ounces of tomato puree or sauceWater (if needed) to cover cabbage rolls1. Set aside steamed cabbage leaves to cool. Grease a 9x13 baking dish.2. In a large mixing bowl combine meat, almond flour, egg, carrot, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Combine thoroughly.3. To fill and roll cabbage rolls. Place a cooled cabbage leave on cutting board with the stem facing you and outer part of the leaf flat on the cutting board. Place a rounded dinner spoonful of meat mixture 1/4 inch away from the stem. Fold the sides in then starting from the stem roll the cabbage leaf up jelly roll style.4. Place cabbage roll in baking dish seam side down. Repeat until all the leaves are filled. Cover with tomato puree. Add an additional water to baking dish if needed to cover stuffed cabbage leaves.5. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until cooked through.*Note you may sub in 1/2 cup of brown rice instead of almond flour though you will need to add 1/2 cup of water to meat mixture and you will need to bake cabbage rolls for 1 & 1/2 to 2 hours.

Saturday, January 26, 2013

I divulged in this post that I was experimenting with the Paleo Diet. For the past month I have cut out peanut butter (sigh), all legumes, all my gluten free flours, all gluten free grains including quinoa, rice, and teff. I started listening to all sorts of Paleo health and nutrition podcasts on my commute to and from work. I skimmed Mark Sisson's Primal Blueprint. I started to believe that all grains were "evil" and destructive. I didn't buy into the whole Paleo philosophy. I've been following the Paleo principles for almost a month and I am done. I don't feel any healthier. In fact I have felt lethargic. I have three days of HIIT cardio in my training plan and did not have the energy to do anything more than weight train. I am hanging up my Paleo apron. This is what I took away from this little experiment.

Friday, January 25, 2013

Hey there the first month of 2013 is almost gone; can you believe it? Me neither! It was four years ago I stumbled upon Tosca Reno on the February 2009 Oxygen Cover. I bought it immediately. She was the inspiration I was looking for. Super fit, toned, and healthy.

I never would have guessed that magazine four years ago would have brought me to where I am today. Eating whole foods, working out consistently, and enjoying life more fully. If A+B=C this magazine was a catalyst to this very blog. I would be delusional to say it is all roses and sunshine. I will be the first to raise my hand and sayI am my own worst critic. I cringe during this time of the year. Goal setting and carryout is not my forte. It is one of my biggest struggles. It is much easier to exist day to day and go about life fulfilling daily obligations. I am driving down this highway called life. My eyes shut tightly my foot glued to the accelerator of the vehicle called my fitness journey. I didn't just eat that or skip this workout; did I?!

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

It is January. While it may be freezing and snowing up north; you have my sympathies if you live there; it is warm and sunny in Florida. This time of year means strawberry season is in full swing for the sunshine state! I was able to get a great deal on 1lbs of Florida Strawberries at a local green market this past week. It was buy 2lbs at 1.99 each get 1lbs free. I knew we would not eat three pounds of berries before they turned so I decided to test drive a new type of pectin I had purchased at my natural health food store Pomona's Universal Pectin.What first drew me in was the natural aspect of this product. The pectin is made from citrus peel. The recipes allow for use of honey, sugar, or a sugar alternative to make your jelly or jam and most recipes only call for 1 cup of sweetener. A traditional strawberry jam recipe can require 7 cups of sugar; yikes! My mom has always made homemade strawberry freezer jelly and it is tradition I (and Rich) want to continue sans massive amounts of white sugar.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Have you seen the movie, Morning Glory, starring Harrison Ford? No?! It is a cute chick flick movie for a rainy Saturday afternoon. I was making frittatas long before I watched this movie. My mind often wanders back to this seen when I make this for breakfast.

The beauty of the frittata is it has no rules. You can use any combo of veggies, lean proteins, and spices with your eggs. Lately I have been tossing avocado to garnish and finish off this great dish. The ingredients in this recipe are my favorite to use.

Friday, January 18, 2013

Over the past three years I've acquired a lot of gym stuff. I have a small arsenal of home gym equipment for when I just can't make it to the actual gym. Some, like my Pilate's reformer, take up a bunch of wasted space while my dip machine and dumbbells are items I use often. Today I'm bringing you my top 5 favorite things I take to the gym to help me get in effective workouts.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

This week has been insane! I am in the middle of my nine day work week stretch and trying to get it together. I have been working on my time management schedule by following tips outlined in Tell Your Time by Amy Lynn Andrews. It is going and progress is SLOW,but progress none the less. I am still tweaking my weekly schedule which is difficult due to my three week rotating schedule. Putting a weekly schedule to better manage my time is a goal of mine for 2013. I also have been striving to adhere to a grocery budget and coming up with some type of menu planning strategy.

I am fly by the seat of my pants gal when it comes to creating a menu for the week. This is what I came up with a chalk board with all my fresh ingredients for weekly meals.

As items get used they are crossed off or the quantity is changed. So far this has been working really well! I am planning on also doing an inventory for all my dry pantry goods too. Putting the chalk board strategy in action on Monday night I made a stir fry with the shrimp, snap peas, peppers, & onion. I used the cauliflower to make a curry cauliflower rice. I didn't snap photos of the curry cauliflower, but will be making it again in the future to share with you all.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

I created this recipe over a week ago. I really was thinking about making a lentil vegetable soup, but since adopting a Paleo Diet, legumes are not on my list of things to eat. I was craving a warm thick comforting soup and this recipe fit the bill. I started reading Practical Paleoover the Christmas holiday. As a result I have ditched all grains, dairy, and legumes. It has been a revolutionary change. I have found that my appetite is changing along with my energy levels. I am eating more protein and healthy fats. I feel more well rested and nourished. Instead of eating quinoa, rice, and other gluten free grains I replaced these items with starchy veggies. Paleo is definitely not for the faint of heart nor is it the right nutrition plan for everyone. So far I have responded positively to this way of eating and will be continuing to learn more about the Paleo lifestyle.

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

There have been a lot of breakfast posts lately on this blog. Rosemary & Maple Turkey Patties, Paleo Pancakes and the like. One would think that I consume breakfast for all three meals a day. I don't, but who doesn't love breakfast for dinner?! During finals week of my undergraduate years at Palm Beach Atlantic University the faculty and staff would host a "It is Midnight Somewhere Breakfast." The dinning hall would open around 9 pm to serve carb-craving, stressed out students delicious breakfast food. I remember piling my plate high with sausages, pancakes, and eggs all the while feverishly talking with my peers as to their predictions for the Microbiology final. Belly full I would then scurry back to my dorm to study. The midnight breakfast was a chance to break from all the cramming and take comfort in my favorite breakfast foods.This will be the second pumpkin pancake recipe on the Lean Gourmet Kitchen. I found a great deal for organic canned pumpkin on Vitacost last week and couldn't wait to cook with it. So eat up cause it is midnight somewhere.

Pumpkin Pancakes Part Deux (Paleo Inspired)

4 eggs beaten1/2 cup of pureed pumpkin

5 TBS of coconut flour

1/4 cup of coconut milk

3 TBS of organic butter melted or coconut butter

2 TBS of raw honey

1 tsp of vanilla extract

1 tsp of cinnamon

1 tsp of pumpkin pie spice

1/4 tsp of baking powder

Heat griddle on medium low heat and melt 1 TBS of butter or coconut oil to coat griddle. Place eggs, pumpkin,coconut flour, milk, 2 TBS of melted butter or coconut oil, vanilla, cinnamon, pie spice, and baking powder into a blender and puree until batter is smooth. Pour batter into silver dollar sized circles and cook until the edges are set and pancake is bubbling. Flip pancakes and cook remaining side. Top with maple syrup, coconut butter, almond butter, or to your liking.

Monday, January 7, 2013

I believe Dr. Oz first introduced me to mashed cauliflower. I would watch Dr. Oz everyday while on maternity leave three years ago. I've had this recipe tucked back in the corners of my mind for quit some time. The idea of faux mashed potatoes repulsed Rich so I never made them. At the farmers market this past week there was a great deal on a head of cauliflower. I made this recipe and won Rich over. He loved it and requested me to make it again in the near future. By no means am I bailing on delicious real mashed potatoes; rather I'm just changing things up a bit.

Mashed Cauliflower

1 head of cauliflower chopped into 2 inch pieces with core and stem removed1/4 tsp of sea salt1/8 tsp of ground black pepper1/4 tsp of garlic powder1/2 tsp of dried oreganoSteam cauliflower until tender and soft. Drain and place in food processor. Add remaining ingredients and puree until smooth. Serves 4-6.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

I am not a registered dietitian nor am I dispensing medical advice in this post. I am merely disguising some dietary changes I am making in my own diet based on my own personal research and dietary needs. Please consult a medical professional before making any diet or medical changes of your own.

I ordered Practical Paleo from Amazon two weeks ago and have been gobbling it up. Practical Paleo: A Customized Approach to Health and a Whole-Foods Lifestyle (affiliate link)If you have been following along my journey on this blog it is no secret that my recipes and foods I consume model the "eat clean diet" and are "whole foods" based. I really hate saying I follow any set diet or mantra when it comes to my eating; you may as well paste "groupie" on my forehead. Instead I strive to create recipes and eat foods that are minimally processed and natural.